As the FireLord - Avatar: Last Airbender (1)
by SkittleScythe
Summary: FireLord Zuko must remember the true meaning of firebending by visiting the Masters Ran and Shaw. Though Zuko will learn again what firebending is, can he return to the Fire Nation knowing he acted recklessly in taking an unhappy yet beautiful firebender back with him? And just what is it she's hiding that will make his faith in his Nation waiver?
1. Chapter 1

**Hello lovelies~  
For my first fanfiction, I decided to do Avatar: The Last Airbender.  
In all honesty, I strongly dislike all the pairings for Zuko so I decided to use an OC.  
However, I am not creative enough to make my own character for this.**

**I only own the plot of this fanfiction. Everything else belongs to their original owners.**

**Special thanks to ShockScythe for making, depending on when he uploads it, the cover and the glorious OC. I just love her!**

_**~SkittleScythe~**_

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It was strangely relaxing to be walking to the Masters Ran and Shaw. If I have forgotten the ways of firebending, they would be able to teach me if I am worthy. Just because I am the FireLord doesn't mean I'm automatically worthy of being taught by the last dragons in existence. The journey was quick and I found myself at the base of the stairs. "Let us begin." I turned to look at the Sun Warrior Chief. He passed the Eternal Flame down before looking to me, "I'm sure you remember what to do, right, FireLord Zuko?." I nodded, "I do." He bowed before backing up. I looked down at the fire in my hand before starting up the steps. The wind was stronger higher up. For some reason, there was what appeared to be someone else there. I reached the top, startling the girl already there. She jumped in surprise and stumbled. I held the Eternal Flame to the side before snagging her arm, "Geez, careful!" She straightened but didn't look up at me, "S-sorry." I raised an eyebrow and released her. Her hands were held over her chest, flames flickering in between her fingers, "You're here to see the Masters, too?" I asked her. She looked up and I was startled by her piercing green eyes, "Yes." I tapped my chin, "People from the Fire Nation don't usually wear blue. You kinda look like you're from a Water Tribe." And she did with the blue dress she wore. The girl held her hands out in front of her, the Eternal Flame burning brightly, "I am a firebender. And not many know of the Masters. Who are you?"  
"Zuko. And you are?"  
"Akira."  
The horn was blown and the tunnels shook as the Masters rushed to greet their pupils. I looked at Akira, her half off-white and half black hair blowing in the wind as she looked back at the lair of Ran, "Might as well do it together, right?" I suggested, "We probably need someone to do the Dancing Dragon with." Akira nodded and faced Ran's lair, offering her fire. I did the same with mine for Shaw. I was nervous but that's not a surprise; to be in the presence of the last dragons, something like that is - _Ran and Shaw burst into the sky at the same time - _unbelievable.

For some reason, the dance seemed to flow easier this time. Was it because I already knew it? I wanted to see how Akira was doing but I didn't to break my concentration. I did the last move and hoped Akira was there to make the arch - She was. We touched fists and made the final arch before turning to face the dragons. I shook slightly in spite of myself, still terrified by the size and fierceness of the Masters. Somehow, Akira was perfectly still. Had she done this before or was she petrified with fear? The dragon in front of me stared me down with its unbreaking gaze. Ran and Shaw gripped the stairs and breathed a jet of fire at us both. I covered my face with my arms, unprepared for the blast of heat and energy. It was so intense, different from last time. A cool hand gently pulled my arm down, "Zuko, look," Akira said. I wanted to rub my eyes as I stared wide eyed at the vortex of colors and light. What could've possibly caused me to forget this majesty? Firebending is much more than fire. How did I forget? My gaze dropped and paused on Akira's pale hand holding my arm before traveling to rest on her face as she stared at the fire, a calm and relieved smile on her face. For some reason, I couldn't look away.


	2. Chapter 2

The grand fire burned away into the orange hued sky. Akira's smile fell as the Masters retreated into their separate lairs. I stretched, feeling very enlightened, before shooting a blazing fire from my fist. Was it just my imagination or was it stronger than my first visit? I turned to Akira, "Thank you for dancing with me." She nodded slowly, "You too." I raised an eyebrow before starting down the steps. I waved to the Chief who nodded, turning to his warriors. After whispering something to them, a few jogged up past me. He extended his hand to me which I took, "Well, it was great to see you again, Zuko. I'm sure you have plenty of work waiting for you back in the Fire Nation." I nodded and smiled slightly, "I do. Thank you for taking the time to greet me." The Chief smiled as well before glaring past me, "Forgive me but I have work to attend to." I looked behind me to see Sun Warriors, one behind and one on each side, holding Akira tightly as they escorted her down the steps. Her eyes were a pale orange with a black ring in the middle. Her pupils were small as well. The Chief put his hand on my shoulder, turning me to face him, "I'm very sorry for not removing her before your arrival and meeting with the Masters."  
"Remove..?"  
He stepped past me as the Sun Warriors held Akira still in front of him. The Chief wiggled his finger in front of her, "You should know better than to stall." She growled in response, "What?"  
"I'm very disappointed in you. Take her away."  
"Now hold on a second," I cut in, causing everyone to look at me. Akira's eyes returned to their usual green. "I am aware that we all have our own personal business," I continued, "But why would you need to lock her up? She hasn't done anything wrong... Right?" The Chief sighed, "Forgive me, FireLord Zuko, but blame it on fate." Akira's eyes widened and her gaze dropped to the floor as the Sun Warriors took her away. She was no longer resisting.

"I don't know what you're talking about," the Chief said, putting his hands on hips as he looked at the evening sky, "The weather seems fine for travel to me." I crossed my arms, "When was the last time you left your village? I've traveled a lot and know what to trust." He pouted then sighed, "Very well. Would you like to stay within the temple or outside?"  
"Outside."  
"Then why'd you ask?!"  
I smirked slightly, turning away to hide it, "So no one tries to kill me if they think I'm an intruder at first glance." The Chief waved his hand, "Alright, alright. Goodnight, my lord." I waved cheerfully as he walked off before walking back to my balloon, rummaging as I pulled out my cloak. It was bothering me more than it should. Why was Akira locked up if she didn't do anything? I put on my cloak, covering my face with my hood before making my way to the temple I was sure they had taken her. It was difficult to avoid booby traps in the dark but I somehow managed it and found myself hiding behind the rocks, facing the temple. There was a weight in my stomach; What was I doing? I am the FireLord. And the FireLord shouldn't be sneaking around like a kid, going against an elder's words. A twig snapped and I crouched lower to the ground, trying to avoid being detected. A light cast a shadow on the path. I tensed up in case they were going to attack. They passed by my hiding spot wearing a dark red cloak, similar to my own but not quite. There was a flame in the center of their palm, lighting the way. I could either wait or sneak away. However, it didn't matter which one I chose because they turned around, quickly backing up into a fighting stance. I rose quietly, putting my hands in the air, "Easy there," I assured, "I don't want any trouble."  
"Don't want any trouble? Then don't go sneaking around at night."  
My hands dropped to my sides, "Wait... Akira?"

She straightened, looked at the fire with a sigh then let it go out. I raised an eyebrow and made a small fire in my hand, lighting up the area. Akira took a few steps towards me then covered the flame with her hand, "Your fire is too bright, Zuko. Someone could see."  
"What are you so worried about?"  
"I'm not allowed to leave at all."  
I glanced around then took her hand that covered mine, "Fine. We'll go to my War Balloon. It's farther away." She nodded and I led the way back, being even more careful. Just as it came into view, I sighed, "Actually, I wanted to talk to you." I released her hand and made another fire that lit up both of our faces under our hoods. Akira watched me carefully, crossing her arms. I leaned against the basket of my War Balloon, "Why do they lock you up?"  
"That's none of your concern."  
My eyes narrowed as I looked at her, "That may be true but you don't like it either. And I feel like it's within my power to do something about it." She shook her hand, "There's nothing you can do so don't bother."  
"They act like they hate you."  
"Well they do."  
"Why?"  
"None of your concern."  
I sighed, "If it really was none of my concern, I would've left today. I have an entire nation to look after!" Her eyes widened, "You do?" I nodded, "I am the FireLord after all."  
"I...had no idea..."  
I raised an eyebrow, "Really? You didn't hear about the new FireLord? Didn't the Chief tell you?" Akira shook her head, "No... No one tells me anything here."  
"You're unhappy," I commented. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't."  
"Then just leave!"  
Her eyes widened even more, "Leave? I can't just leave."  
"Well why not?"  
"I told you I'm not allowed to leave. And..."  
I tilted my head, "And?" She rubbed her arms, "And I have no way to actually leave this place. They'd find me instantly. You can't get very far on foot."  
"Haven't you tried?" I asked, "You leave, spend the night in hiding and make your way to wherever you want to go."  
"I can't leave them... I can't leave the Masters. They are the only ones who look out for me."  
I tapped my chin with my free hand, "That's why you were so calm around them." Akira nodded, letting her hands fall to her sides. "If they watched over you, took care of you," I said, looking at her, "wouldn't they want you to be happy?"

Her eyes widened, "But... I can't leave them." I crossed my arms, keeping the fire alive, "But you can't be unhappy either. If you're unhappy, that would just make them sad wouldn't it?" She fell silent so I continued, "You've clearly been around them for a long time so have you ever noticed a time when they seemed depressed? Maybe after you _might _have let your emotions be made clear on accident?" She stared at the ground, deep in thought as I said, "Shouldn't you be happy? If they are feeling depressed because of the way you're living, by actually living happily, wouldn't that make them happy too?" After a long pause, she said with a shaky voice, "How are you so wise?" She sniffed, her face hidden by her hood as she brought her hand up, wiping her eyes. I kept my arms crossed as I watched her cry almost silently. How did I get to be so wise? Was it because of Uncle? True, because of him I have found myself saying things he might say and have opened up exponentially but, now, should I risk being so reckless just to save someone? Akira looked up at the dark, night sky, her green eyes glimmering in the moon's light, "I should go..."  
"Go where?"  
"Back.."  
I straightened, letting the fire go out, "You aren't going back." She looked at me, "And what's stopping me?"  
"Nothing. But you are keeping yourself from being happy. Akira, you could just run away now."  
She snorted, "And where would I go? There's nowhere for me to go."  
"You could come to the Fire Nation with me."  
Her eyes widened, "You're joking.."  
"I'm not. I'm being serious. You could live in the palace with me," I offered, putting a hand on the basket of the War Balloon, "I have said this countless times already but you don't have to be unhappy." Akira looked back towards the temple and then the cliff. Then, she turned to me as I climbed into the basket, preparing for take off, "You could be offering to take a monster to the Fire Nation you know."  
"I don't see a monster. Just a stubborn girl."  
I made a fire in my hand, "There's no time to get your belongings, sorry." She wiped her eyes real quick before approaching the basket, "That's okay. I don't have anything anyways." I couldn't help but give her a half smile as I extended my other hand to her, "Alright. I have a feeling you'll enjoy the sights of the world from the sky." Akira took my hand and I helped her into the basket, "I'm...excited.."


	3. Chapter 3

**Ah! I'm so sorry, lovelies! I know I haven't updated! But it's all okay now (I hope). Writers block hates me so...  
Well, you get the picture.**

_**~SkittleScythe~  
**_**(p.s. Sorry for short chapters!)**

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"Remember the plan?" I asked, bringing the balloon in for a landing in the courtyard after a couple days of flying. Akira nodded, curled up in a ball on the floor of the basket. To keep suspicion at a minimum, no one was going to know about her. And she had no problem with this. I looked down at her, "Do you think you'd be able to sneak away in time?" She nodded again, switching to sit on her heels. People waved to greet me as I brought the balloon down. Being bad with names, I couldn't name the official that greeted me. I hopped out of the basket, "Work has piled up, hasn't it?" He nodded, bowing deeply, "Yes it has, FireLord Zuko. Fairly important work too."  
"Like?"  
"Resistance in the east."  
I tilted my head, "There's nothing to resist." He shook his head sadly, "Some still follow Ozai. They're resisting your rule." I sighed, putting a hand on my head, "Alright, alright, I'll look into it." He bowed again and waved his hand, servants rushing to the War Balloon to clean it. One cried out, dropping to their knees and covering their head. I rushed to them, "Are you okay?"  
"F-forgive me, my Lord," they stammered, "I thought I s-saw something." The official sighed, "Pardon the poor fool, my lord. He makes up things occasionally." I sighed as well, an anchor in my gut, "I will be taking care of business. Please keep guests away and postpone arrangements." He bowed, "Yes, my lord." As I was walking away, I glanced back at the balloon. It seems like Akira got away. Even though she startled one of the servants. I rubbed my temples as I walked into the palace. Though I knew it was part of my responsibility, I couldn't help but feel weighed down. However, it came with the job so I shouldn't be complaining.

I flopped face first onto my bed, exhausted. The moon was high in the night sky, shining in through the window and lighting up the bedroom. Somehow, I had not been prepared for the load of work that had awaited me. With a groan, I pushed myself up and made my way to the glass door leading outside to the private garden. I slid the glass open and stepped outside, closing it quietly behind me. The garden was empty. I put a hand to my mouth, whispering loudly, "Akira?" No answer. I looked around quickly before calling again, "Akira." Still nothing. She hadn't been captured had she? "Zuko, up here." I looked at the tall trees in the garden, noticing off-white hair that glowed white in the moon light. I walked toward the tree, stopping at the trunk and looking up at Akira. She smiled at me and I couldn't help but smile back slightly, "How's the view up there?" She tapped one of the branches, "Nice. So this is the Fire Nation's capital?" I nodded, looking around, "This is my home."  
"It's pretty."  
"Aren't you from here? You know, being a firebender and all."  
Akira leaned back against the tree, "No... Well, I don't know." I raised an eyebrow, "You don't know? How can you not know?" She bit her lip and looked away and I knew I had pried too much, "Um... I'm sorry, Akira..."  
"It's fine... Don't worry about it. You...already have so much on your plate."  
She dropped out of the tree beside me, "I should be apologizing..."  
"For what? You haven't done anything wrong."  
"You're so busy.. I feel bad for weighing you down.."  
I looked at her for a moment before putting my hand on her head and ruffling her soft hair, causing her to look up at me, "Relax," I told her, "I don't want you to stress out over stuff like this. I'll take care of everything, so don't you worry." Sure, I wanted to say more but this was enough. She smiled slightly, "You kind of trick me into believing I'm safe."  
"You are," I promised, "I'll...protect you if you want." Akira didn't say anything. However, she didn't need to. The smile on her face that stretched from ear to ear was enough for me.


	4. Chapter 4

A week has passed since I brought Akira to the Fire Nation and, after working tirelessly to complete late and current work, I had freed up some time to actually show her around. After finishing enough work for the week, I went to my room and closed the bedroom door behind me, sighing as I slid down and sat on the floor. I removed my crown and rested my head on my knees after shaking my hair out. There were no other sounds except the sound of my own breathing and the incredibly faint rustling of leaves of the trees outside. Moments passed before I finally decided to move, getting to my feet sluggishly, and setting my crown on the bed. I quickly changed into my clothes for sleeping before pulling the curtains back from the glass door into the garden. The first thing I saw was Akira lying in the grass. She had insisted on sleeping outside after being locked away for so long. Though, she did agree that she would hide in my room when they took care of the garden. I slid the door open and stepped outside, instantly greeted by a cool breeze. After standing in one place for a while, relaxing with the cool grass beneath my feet and the cool breeze that blew at my robes, I walked towards Akira, leaving the door ajar. She didn't move at first and I saw, as I got closer, that her eyes were closed. Did she fall asleep? I crouched beside her, looking at her for a moment before looking up at the night sky. The air was calm tonight. Hours could've passed and I wouldn't have noticed. Nor would I have cared. "Zuko..?" I jumped slightly before looking down at Akira who was looking up at me, her green eyes somehow reflecting every star in the sky. "Did I wake you?" I asked. She shook her head. I sighed, sitting down in the grass beside her, "Sorry I couldn't come sooner. Before you fell asleep."  
"It's fine. You have a lot of work after all."  
"But it's all finished now. I made sure to double check but I really wanted to hurry up and finish."  
"Why?"  
"Why? Well...um..." I bit my lip and looked off to the side. How the heck am I supposed to tell her 'I finished it for you'? My ears were red with embarrassment, I could tell from the way they burned. While I had been busy trying to figure out what to say, I hadn't noticed Akira lifting her hand. She grabbed my arm and pulled me back so that I was lying beside her in the grass, looking up at the sky, "Ah, um..."  
"Don't bother trying to figure out why," she said, releasing my arm and putting her hand back at her side, "You should be able to get a break now which is always good. Even the FireLord needs to take a break every now and then." I only nodded, glancing over at her. Suddenly, my heart jumped to my throat, "Akira..?"  
"Hm?"  
"What is that?" I asked, bringing my hand up to point at dark, burn-like marks peeking out from under the neck of her dress.

She was silent for a moment, "Nothing... Don't worry about it..."  
"Akira..?" I asked, a pleading tone in my voice. She didn't have to tell me if she didn't want to, but those marks were all too familiar. After a while, she sighed, "I don't remember much," she said slowly, her voice shaking slightly, "But I remember...soldiers coming from all directions... I couldn't fight them off alone and no one even tried to help... Three of them attacked at once and then..." Akira fell silent and I found myself wanting to cover my ears. I knew she was having a hard time telling me and remembering the details but, at this point, I didn't want to know any more, "And then..?" I asked shakily. She squeezed her eyes shut, a look of pain flashing across her face, "After being with Ran and Shaw for so long, I didn't expect fire to hurt so much..."  
"Fire..? Were the soldiers wearing red armor?"  
She nodded, covering her eyes with her arm. My heart, still lodged in my throat, shattered into a million fragments. Firebenders attacked her. My Nation attacked her. They _burned_ her. I know she isn't the only one that this has happened to but it seemed to be a lot worse now. Was it because the Nation has change since then? Or was it because she was a firebender too? Could it be because she hardly had the chance to go outside and, on one of those few occasions, was attacked so viciously? Or could it be because no one even tried to help her. I glanced at her, my thoughts still a confusing jumble. Akira had removed her arm and was staring at the sky again. I could tell she was trying not to cry, "Thank you for telling me..." I said. She only nodded and bit her lip, a few tears falling from her eyes. They sparkled like tiny crystals in the moon's light. Why was I so bad at talking to people? At comforting them? It is my duty as the FireLord to clean up after the FireLords before and help my Nation forward. The attacking of innocent people will never again be tolerated while I am the FireLord. I closed my eyes and took Akira's hand, not saying a word. She said nothing as well but, instead, tightly gripped my hand. Her hand seemed so fragile as if it were a moth's wings, threatening to tear from a single touch. As the FireLord, I swear I will try my best to right the wrong my Nation has done.

_As the FireLord, I swear I will erase the memory from_ _your mind, Akira._

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**Ah, so... That just happened.  
Well, lovelies, I hope you enjoyed and I apologize if it seemed short. If you liked it, do not worry, there will be more to come because...well...to put it simply; I FREAKING LOVE ZUKO X AKIRA! THERE'S NO WAY I'M THE ONLY ONE!  
ShockScythe, thank you for the OC, she's amazing!**

**And, yes, I know moths aren't very romantic but they work better than butterflies in this situation. Believe me, I checked. Like, 3000 times.**

**Leave reviews, I don't mind if they're positive or negative. It all helps me in the long run.  
Until next time, Skittleites (Working on names. Because I can.)  
BUH BYE~  
_~SkittleScythe~_**


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